Jewelry and horses don’t really mix. I’ve had a couple of near misses.
Once, a managed to break the chain of a necklace when I was jumping a fence and the end of my crop got tangled in the chain. It sent my favorite amethyst pendant flying into the grass. After my lesson I walked and crawled through the areas where I’d jumped. The only thing I found was poison ivy. This hadn’t been on my radar screen because as a child, I’d been immune to it. Unfortunately, that proved to be no longer true. The poison ivy left me with such terrible itching and swelling I looked as if I had elephantitis. As for the pendant? My now husband, then boyfriend, rented a metal detector and we found it — not even close to where I thought it would have fallen.
The next near miss happened right after Christmas a few years back. I’d forgotten to take off the new bracelet that I’d gotten and rode in the indoor arena. It was gone when I dismounted. Luckily, the barn manager knew I’d lost it and spotted it a few days later, glinting in the dirt.
Fast forward to this week.
About six years ago, a friend and I were heading off for a ride. When she realized she was wearing a nice pair of earings, gifted by her husband, she took them off and put them on the dashboard of my car.
We both forgot they were there.
By the time she remembered, they were deep in the air ducts. My husband managed to recover one of them, but the other was too far gone. Last week that car went to its final resting place: the junk yard. Offered a reward, they took the dashboard apart and the earring turned up. The two are rather tarnished, but nothing that a bit of silver polish won’t fix.
What is your rule about jewelry and riding? Do you wear it? I know people who’ve taken their engagement rings off only to lose them, so I’m super conscious about taking anything nice off at the barn. In fact, I don’t wear anything expensive to the barn any more figuring it is safer at home!
Lost a watch in the arena. Walked it but couldn’t find it. Three months later, one of the guys working the arena found it and put it on a post. Watch still works after months of watering and being turned over in the footing.
Is it a Timex? Takes a lickin’ and keeps on ticking!
The only jewelry I wear is my wedding band. (not to sound too pretentious, but I don’t have an engagement ring, because I refuse to own diamonds on ethical grounds). (which, when he proposed, made my husband very happy…;-)
I worked on engines for years. If you want to keep your hands, I learned, take off all jewelry. Even so, I saw, on more than one occasion, were my fellow mechanics were injured when a piece of jewelry got caught up in the works. (type in “degloved fingers’ into Google image to see some horrifying results)
In the barn, it’s not much different. All it takes is for a horse to flip his bridled head to catch a buckle on your earring…and earlobes are more easily torn than you would believe.
We entered a zoo free flight aviary, where parrots were flying free. A big sign at the entrance warned to remove all jewelry (and glasses!) as some of the birds were jewelry thieves. We actually saw it happen…a cockatoo flew like an arrow at woman a few feet ahead of us, (she’d not removed her earrings), landed on her shoulder and literally bit part of her ear lobe off.
Bling isn’t necessary in the barn. Keep it safe at home for when you want to wear it to some fancy do.
Yes, I’ve read the horror stories of what can happen when wearing rings. It’s horrifying. Years ago, my horse slipped coming into a jump and we crashed into the standard and I hit my hand. I realized I was in trouble and managed to get my engagement ring off before my hand swelled up. It was more than a year before I could wear it again and I never wore it to the barn again. I’ve also known a few people who had their earrings catch in their horse’s manes. Not a pretty outcome, so I don’t wear those anymore either.
Ow, it hurts just to read that. Boy , that was some injury…you were smart to remove your ring.
Most ER’s have tools they use to cut rings off of fingers.
It amazes me when I see some of the wealthier women in the horse world handle horses with their big rocks on their hands. Let’s not even discuss the mechanical injuries…think of what happens if it’s lost? I don’t think it’s intentional boasting, I think it’s merely habit…but still. Then, of course, all the world must stop to look for the ring.
As for the poison ivy…boy, you’ve taught me something. I, too, think I was immune to it’s effects as a kid, but now, (our immune systems age when we do) I don’t know…and don’t want to find out. It’s nasty stuff, and with our warming climate, it’s becoming far more potent.
By the way, did you ever see the TV commercial for some product I cannot remember? Mom is in the kitchen, kneading dough for a family dinner. She realizes later that her ring is missing but she’s not left the house so it has to be somewhere, right? Cut to the dining room table, everyone is dressed up, it’s a big do. The teenaged daughter has her boyfriend sitting next to her. Suddenly she’s shrieking in joy and hugging him…she’d broke open her dinner roll and there was the ring……….
The boy has that deer in the headlights look..wha? Wha?
It’s funny as hell.